A New Fire
by Kuroru
Summary: An endless war between the Ancients and the dark starts coming to a close as a Ninetales stumbles across a new Sol. Only 2 generations of Sols left, but will her feelings for one bring forth salvation or spell doom for all existence?
1. The Generation Starts

**Author's note:**

**There are absolutely NO humans in this story and there will never be any humans in my stories. Also if anyone finds any grammatical errors please let me know; Microsoft Word isn't perfect... **

* * *

Our group ventured forward just to outside the borders of the clan we were sent to investigate and assess the damage. There were rumors of an unknown force at work nearby the clan grounds, but we knew better. I just had no idea that they would take it as far as killing the entire clan and leaving the grounds in ruins…but I guess I should have expected it because it was in their nature.

"Cynder…look."

The entire area had been destroyed. The ground had huge holes in it that all seemed to be connected in a certain path. Unfortunately, that path led to all the destroyed dens. And all the dens were splattered with...blood. Corpses seemed to litter the area around the homes and the body parts of many unidentifiable Pokemon were scattered everywhere. All the homes, all the Pokemon…gone and dead. There were craters scattered everywhere I looked, and marks of battle seemed to have taken place..

"Come, we better do what we came here for," I sighed. The sight of this makes me sad…We started to spread out to cover more ground. I hadn't gotten far when two Pokemon appeared on my left and right sides.

"What?" I asked. I looked up to my left to see a tall bipedal jackal-like Pokémon. It had blue fur and a black mask of fur over its eyes. Its stomach was yellow and each paw had a strange spike on the back of it's. No doubt that it was a Lucario...and an annoying one at that. He grinned…either at me or the equally annoying Pokemon to my right.

"Aww, come on! Don't act like that," he said. I didn't have to look up to see this Pokemon. I turned to my right and set out a sigh when I saw the Mightyena grinning at me.

"Why did you two follow me?" I asked. "Aren't we supposed to…I dunno...be spreading out?"

To be honest, I was perfectly fine with them tagging along with me, even though we are supposed to be working individually. Separately, those two are more…responsible. Together, though, playing around and having fun is the only thing on their minds, and they've been doing that ever since they met.

"I get bored!"

I sighed. Maxwell was always the most laid back Mightyena I've ever known. Not that I DO know any others, but weren't they were supposed to be more...Intelligent? I looked up at the Lucario for his response, but he only shrugged.

"Well, we should get some work done then. Come on," I said and started off to inspect the den nearest to us.

"Sure," Maxwell said and went off into a different direction, but still stayed close enough to fool around with me and Ty. The Lucario followed me into the ruined place.

Everything around me was either rubble or had been stained with blood. We couldn't possibly find anything here that was worth investigating.

"Ty, maybe we should—"

A whimper cut me off. What was that? It couldn't have been any of us.

"Did you hear that?" I asked. Ty nodded and we started to listen for it again. And I soon heard it from inside the den. "It's coming from over there," I gestured with my paw towards a boulder that seemed a bit out of place. Upon closer inspection, I found a crevice behind the boulder that covered an entrance that was probably another room.

"Ty, can you move it?" I stepped out of the way for the Lucario as he inspected the boulder for himself. He placed his paws onto the boulder and lightly pushed, trying to test its weight. It must've been too heavy as he stepped to the side of the boulder and did a nicely placed kick that crumbled it without too much effort. The boulder was indeed blocking another room and I stepped forward to see inside.

Lying on the floor was the form of a canine with bright orange fur decorated with black stripes. It had thick, creamy fur on its stomach, tail and on top of its head. It was crying and didn't seem to notice we were inside.

"Hello," I said to the Growlithe. For a moment the crying ceased as it looked up at me with its hazel brown eyes, but soon resumed. I padded up to it and tried to comfort it by curling around its small form with my tails. The crying started became short sobs and whines.

"Poor thing. It's probably still a pup." I said. I've always had a soft spot when it came to these sorts of things. "Ty, can you go find Maxwell? We need to bring him back with us."

Ty just stood there, his eyes wide open, gaping at us.

"What?" I asked. I don't think I've ever seen him this shocked before. "What's the matter?"

He seemed to regain his composure as he looked out the entrance of the room to see if anyone was nearby. "Cynder. When this mission is over, I want you to take full custody of that pup."

"Really? Why?" I already knew I was going to do that, but why was he telling me this?

"Remember the Sols?" He asked. I nodded. The Sols, or Solace, were an exclusive group of Pokemon that had the ability of light along with their natural types. "And do you remember their jobs and what they are supposed to do?"

I nodded again. They were the ones that decided whether or not we would struggle for another century in darkness, or we would live in peace and prosperity. There was only 8 Pokemon from every generation every 100 years that were Sols, and those 8 were said to come together and seal the darkness away by using their light. If they were to succeed, then darkness would be of minimal concern and we wouldn't be in the mess we were in right now. The last generation only partly succeeded.

"What about when they die? He asked. Again, I nodded. Where was he going with this? Does he not remember I am one of the Sols?

"Yes I do. When one of the Sols die they would have had to pass their powers down to one who they see fit, and that power would also have to deem that Pokemon worthy as well. If a Sol died before they passed down their powers and before they sealed the darkness, that generation's seal on the dark will be weaker, and that darkness would be able to leak out more power. The Sol's power would also be given to a newborn Pokemon and the cycle will start over again. Also, Sols can either keep their powers and help with the next generation, assuming they live, or that Pokemon and the light would pass judgment onto another Pokemon that they would deem worthy of that power to be part of the next generation. Although, that Pokemon will be only considered as a later generation of Sols, and in a sense would be considered an extra to the newer generation of Sols. And me being a Ninetales, I can choose all options because of our age length. And supposedly there are only 2 generations left of Sols. But I don't see your point."

"My point is that in the last generation, 3 of the 8 Sols died during the final stand at the seals, the Ancients only have managed to find 2 of those newborn Pokemon who can use light. The other Sols successfully passed down their powers before they died, with you as an exception. Meaning, we only have 7 of the 8 new generation of Sols…until now."

"No way, you don't mean..." The Lucario nodded. The Growlithe that had fallen asleep in my tails is the last Sol?

"And that is why you need to take care of him. He will need someone with experience to learn all that he needs to know, and you are just the one to do that."

"Yeah, I will. Now let's report back." I picked the Growlithe up by the scruff of its furry neck and exited the den.

I smiled, I've always wanted to have someone to look after…besides Maxwell and Ty that is.


	2. Working Together

**Author's Note: **

**If anyone spots any grammatical error, please let me know; Microsoft Word isn't perfect...  
**

* * *

"Cynder!"

I spun around at the sound of my name…only to get tackled by a mass of orange and yellow fur that belonged to a certain Growlithe.

"Archie! How did the mission go?" I asked.

Ever since Archie started to live with me, I have been raising him as if he was one of my own. Although his blood is not of an Ancient, his growth rate is stupendous. He's already starting to go on missions and he has started to get accustomed to his light powers as well as controlling his own fire powers. I didn't want him to almost burn down a forest…

Since he was born from regular Pokemon, he doesn't have the abilities of an Ancient or the endurance. Yet here he is; back from his first mission, which was a success by the looks of it, at such a young age. This most likely has to do with being a Sol though. They were naturally powerful as well.

"It went great! I got to do lots of stuff too! There wasn't any fights, but I got to explore and get supplies and camp out and—"

"Sounds like you had lots of fun," I said to him.

"Yeah I did! Oh! I still have to report back! I'll be home later, okay?" With that said, he bounded off towards the direction of his leader.

I'm so proud of him...He's growing up so fast. I can't believe this is the same Growlithe that me and Ty found all alone in the ruins of a clan ground. He was so puny back then too. Now the Growlithe has gotten a lot bigger and put on some muscle. He's gonna need it too of he wants to be able to fight alongside us…He's not an Ancient, so that makes him a regular Pokemon, excluding that fact that he is a Sol.

Being an Ancient; it means that we have access to enormous amounts of power, those of which are beyond a regular Pokemon's ability. Still, some regular Pokemon have the capacity to exceed an Ancient's power if they had proper training, experience, and strategy, but that's usually rare.

Although we have this much power, our...civilization, I guess it could be called that, is very small compared to most clans or areas in general. Ancients are an exclusive group, usually purists, of powerful Pokemon that protect the balance of existence itself, but most likely would want to have it to thrive towards salvation. Searching, gathering, and training the Sols are our top priority, so that we can lead them towards their journey to gather at the Seals and lock up the darkness that seems to be getting stronger with every generation.

Finding a Sol is very hard for a very simple reason; with our low population we don't have many scouters or seekers to go around, without dying, and look through the large clans that contain Pokemon. And making the job even harder would be the fact that there are only 8 Sols, who can be living in the most remote locations, and it's hard to even TELL that a Sol would be amidst the seeker.

But we are always prepared; if we weren't, then things would be even worse than it is now. We've always had a back-up plan and always will. We've found hints and clues that bring us closer to finding the Sols before they might end up getting killed.

First, we have befriended the Pokemon race Lucario in order to aid our search. They use their aura powers to "sense" Pokemon aura around them. They would be able to tell if a Pokemon was a Sol just because of the aura the light within them emits.

Second, we monitor places that have been attacked or raided by "unknown forces". Usually Sols are targeted to be killed, so the darkness would be able to do more damage, and prolong the Seals along with the next Sol generation. When all 8 Sols are alive, the generation starts, and the Seals start to appear.

And finally, when we've found a Sol, we make sure to keep them alive, so they can then pass down their light to another Pokemon, thus making the search easier on everyone.

"Cynder!" I saw Archie running back towards me. He seemed particularly happy about something.

"What is it?" I called back. He stood before me as he looked up at me and smiled.

"We've got a mission together!" He said happily, his fluffy tail swinging back and forth. Of course, everyone had their own parts to fulfill, even the kits. It was only a matter of time before another assignment. I hadn't been on one ever since I took Archie home with me and cared for him. He was able to stand on his own paws now. Although never been in a fight, I'm confident he will do just fine; I trained him after all.

"Sure," I said to him smiling. I was excited myself. Our first mission together…Let's hope it would turn out great.

* * *

Our group was comprised of me, Archie, a Sneasel named Rumei, and a Meditite whose name escapes me. Most of the time groups have about 6 – 7 Pokemon on it, but this was a rather easy mission; we were escorts for a group of Pokemon delivering items to another clan.

Trading and currency weren't very popular in a lot of areas – usually it's first come, first serve – but these Pokemon seemed to work out some sort of circulation that seems to be almost flawless. The only thing to be worried about were Pokemon who wanted to steal from them, which I think was called bandits.

In exchange for missions from other Pokemon, we either gained mainly information, food supplies, and other various items. Our clients must be carrying some pretty rare items to be targeted by Pokemon just for stuff. Mainly it would be for reasons like territory, food, or possibly a grudge.

Our group seemed to be mainly for younger Pokemon, those who were just starting out on missions, or those too inexperienced in battle, which is why I was made leader of this mission. I didn't argue about that, this group had more than enough potential to be escorts.

The Meditite, whose name I still don't remember can use psychic to scan the area for potential threats, while still being able to fight if there is a time. I could do it myself, but I wasn't going to do all the work myself and I surely wasn't going to tell him that.

Rumei is young too, but she's very capable at combat, especially with her claws. This was her second mission since she broke her leg on the first one. She was pretty beat up when her group returned. I guess things got a little too dangerous or someone was being reckless, but she recovered nicely and is now at tip-top shape; fast, agile, and good with her icy daggers, an excellent fighter.

Next were me and Archie. We would both be able to burn anything that is considered an enemy. We were the firepower in this group...Literally.

We waited at the border of the clans for our clients. They seemed pretty concerned with the items. What exactly are they trading anyways?

"This is going to be great!" Archie said. He was so hyped about it. Probably because I'm here with him. I admit I'm a little excited about this as well. It gives me a chance to see how much he has learned and how much progress he is making. The Sol generation has started after all and he needs to be able to fight before going to the Seals. I'm secretly hoping to observe him in battle too. I haven't spent any time with the other Sols, but they are all pretty much older than him, so they've been training longer…

Soon our clients arrived to the rendezvous point. A Machop, Pidgeotto, Charmander, and a Pokemon that had a full brown body, a long pointed nose, and a single leaf that seemed to grow from its head.

"We are ready when you are," said the Machop in a slight monotone.

Hmm, by the looks of it, these Pokemon look like they could escort themselves effectively; the Pidgeotto would be able to fly up and become a look-out for bandits, the Charmander, if I remember correctly, can produce a smokescreen at a young age, which makes it a quick getaway plan, and the other two Pokemon looked like fighters to me…Maybe the bandits are just that strong?

"We should head out before the sun begins to set," I told them. "Let's go."

* * *

Walking in the afternoon isn't that bad. The clients were a little bit too quiet for my liking. Maybe they were just really nervous. Although, I liked it when everyone talked a little bit…like Archie was doing now…

"So can you teach me about the Seals?" He asked me. "Like what happens when you are at them? How do you get there anyways? What does it look like?"

"This time they are a bit north of where we live and it will most likely take a week to get there at most, depending on what happens on the way. It's located underground, so it's well hidden. It moves for every generation too, just so that there wouldn't be a constant location that can be taken advantage of. Nobody wants to have an enemy know where they are at." I let him take that last part in, and then started again.

"When you get there, you would have to go deeper underground to get to the actual Seals – which is defended very well. There are many traps, crossroads, and pitfalls there. It's meant to be like that because not just _anybody _should be allowed to enter. Only a Sol can truly get through without harm. They also act as guides when accompanying those who aren't a Sol." I let him process more of that information I had just given.

"And...Umm…I don't really know how to describe the looks of it..." I said.

"That's fine. When I go there, can you come with me? Please?" He said. I chuckled a bit at this.

"Of course I'm going with you, and I'll be there fighting alongside you when the time comes too," I said smiling. He smiled at my answer. This was true. I _WILL_ be going with Archie. I'll protect him with my entire life…he means so much to me….

"What about Ty and Maxwell? Would they be coming along?" He asked.

Ehh…I don't even know how I survive with those two around me. They are always up to no good and goofing off, yet when it comes to battle they are a good team. They're like brothers to me, and I love them both to death, but the thought of their games wasn't exactly appealing to me…

"I'm not sure. You should ask them when we get back," I told him. That would have to be our leader's decision. Since I was a Sol too, I was obliged to go.

Not far away, I was able to make out what looked like our destination. I could see little moving dots, which I assume were the Pokemon that live there. It was a fairly big place to live; it was a square shaped meadow, surrounded by trees that covered all its sides, except for an opening in the front to enter the grounds, and it looked like it had a lake judging from the blue that's off to the side.

"Hey, is that the place we're going?" I called back to our clients. The Charmander and Machop nodded at each other, and then the Machop dropped the wooden crate full of items. Why did they do that?

"No," Said the Charmander with a big grin on his face.

"Oh OK, then let's keep going," I said. I could have sworn that was the place.

"No," Said the Charmander again.

"What? What do you mean 'no'?" I asked him. Archie, Rumei, and the Meditite turned towards our clients at this response. His grin became wider, as the Pidgeotto landed, and all four of our clients gathered together.

"What we mean is that nobody is going to be receiving any items. We're taking these items with us," He said, grinning evilly. "Nor, are we going to let you live."

Crap…

They charged…


	3. Item Suprise

**Author's Note: **

**If anyone spots any grammatical error, please let me know; Microsoft Word isn't perfect...**

* * *

We all got into a battle stance, ready to fight, as our "clients" charged at us. I was fairly confident that everyone can hold their own against these Pokemon, even _if _they had experience in fighting. Besides that, we had a good type advantage towards them along with being an Ancient. We don't really put our reputation out there because that might cause some problems..

Type advantage was good enough. We had Fire, Dark, Ice, Psychic, and Fighting types on our side, while they had Fighting, Fire, Flying, and I assume Grass because of the leaf on one of their heads. This was going to be easy.

Then things got a little bit more complicated.

There was smoke everywhere and it was obscuring my vision. I'm guessing the Charmander must have done this. Now I don't know who was fighting who, but even on a one on one, we'd still be able to beat them. I'm sure of that.

Wait. Even if we _could_ beat them, they still can run away _WITH_ the crate. Our assignment was to escort a few Pokemon with items, safely to another clan. Unfortunately the Pokemon were the bandits. The crate is our top priority now.

I concentrated on the field and started to psychically scan the area and minds to see where everyone is. Being an Ancient means you have tremendous power, but that doesn't change the fact that other Pokemon can run away even from the most powerful opponents.

Let's see…I can sense Archie fighting…the Charmander, the Meditite was standing there, dodging attacks from the Pidgeotto, and I sensed there were two…blobs on my psychic "radar". Most likely Rumei, but that other one I don't know…is it that thing with the leaf?

'_I'll go for the items; that damned Ninetales can seriously ruin our chances of winning in a fight,' _I read from one of the bandit's mind. Indeed I would.

I concentrated on the Pokemon who was thinking these thoughts. My mind got a psychic grasp onto him and I flung him to the opposite direction he was heading. I heard a thud that was probably against a tree. His mind went blank and I knew I had just knocked him out.

The smokescreen cleared up and everyone's sight returned. I looked to see who I had knocked out and saw that the Machop was lying against a tree, unconscious. The other bandits must have realized they were at a disadvantage from the start because they regrouped; we did so as well. The items were a fairly good distance behind us, but we wouldn't be able to pick it up effectively with psychic and run; our concentration would be broken if they were to give chase to us.

"Get the items!" One of the bandits shouted. The Pidgeotto responded to this order and flew towards the crate full of items.

"Archie, stop him and go for the crate!" I barked. "Everyone else hold the others off!"

Rumei and the Meditite each picked a fight of their own; Rumei was fighting the thing with the leaf on its head, and the Meditite chose to fight the Charmander. Archie was the closest to crate from our group, so naturally, I chose him to protect it.

I ran after Archie, who was heading closer to the crate. The Pidgeotto seemed to match running power and flight with him. Archie blasted a steady stream of flames into the air at the flying type, but the Pidgeotto dodged, changed his course of action, and dive bombed after Archie.

With its talons extended, the bird swooped down on the pup and lifted him off the ground with a yelp. The bird was flying straight towards the crate, as he flung the Growlithe – who yelped again - at the crate, which smashed into pieces; scattering the items on the ground. A colourful assortment of berries, odd looking stones, and other items littered the ground floor everywhere.

"Get the items!" Me and apparently one of the other bandits shouted. The Pidgeotto started to swoop down for the items. Archie, who recovered from the wooden crash, got up and headed towards the items. He started to frantically gather the items in a group instead of having them scattered everywhere. I took aim at the Pidgeotto who was ready to snatch something out of the pile, but Archie touched something that made him glow.

The glowing made everything come to a halt, as the Pidgeotto's eyes widened in shock as he spread his wings in an attempt to stop his flight. He stared at the glowing figure as Archie's size started to grow right before him.

A column of fire erupted from the ground, frying the bird Pokemon. Once the fire died down, there stood an even bigger Pokemon with a fluffier tail and mane, it had even longer stripes and was at least 3 times the size of a Growlithe. I smiled; I guess there was a fire stone among those items. No matter how many times one witnesses an evolution, it's always amazing to see…

The bandits gaped at the Arcanine standing before them. Rumei and the Meditite took this chance to deal a knockout blow to both of them. We then all turned our attention towards Archie. He looked at us confused.

"What just happened?"

* * *

Our group stood at the clan grounds awaiting the alpha to pick up the items. We decided to carry the items since the crate was smashed to pieces. Also, we left behind the bandits where they lay unconscious. Maybe they would get found by some other Pokemon and be dealt with. It wasn't a fair enough punishment for them since they attacked us, but I had to thank them for making Archie evolve.

"So I...evolved?" He asked. I guess he was still trying to figure out what happened.

"Yes. Your body reacted to the radiation from the fire stone that was among the items. That would be the only possible way for a Growlithe to evolve as far as I know." I told him. "A Vulpix would evolve the same way too."

He looked over his body one more time. He was still young, but he looked like a full grown adult as an Arcanine only a little bit smaller though. He still needs to develop mentally and physically though. The path of a Sol is indeed difficult.

"Does that mean I'm a lot stronger too?" He asked.

"Of course, but you still would need time to get used to your new body. You're like three times the size you used to be," I said.

"Is that way I had to carry most of the stuff?" he asked. I smiled at him, but didn't respond to his question.

"Are you all the ones who brought the items? You were the escorts correct?" I heard a feminine voice say. I turned and saw a Pokemon with a yellow mane and fur on her head. The rest of her body was covered in light blue fur.

"Yes, we were," I told her. "But it looks like we became the deliverers too."

"Um…I'm sorry about one of the fire stones. I accidentally evolved from one," Archie apologized. I guess it was worth mentioning. Just in case they found some things missing..

"No no that's fine. I'm so sorry about the bandits though, we had no idea that they would be the ones we were watching out for," she said. I figured that she was the alpha. Not many alphas were female though, but she looked very capable of handling her own in battle and most likely winning. That's probably why she's alpha. "By the way, was there anything strange about them? Like the way they acted or fought?"

I shook my head. Why would they act strange? They only wanted to steal the stuff, and when I read their minds, they were entirely focused on battling, or in the Machop's case, stealing the items.

"No, nothing at all, but why would you ask?" I asked.

"Well, there seems to be a few Pokemon that seems to be acting very strange around these regions lately. I don't know why though. We've even had a few Pokemon act like that from the clan as well. They just get really violent and start killing and destroying everything. Luckily, nobody was hurt here," she shuddered at this. "They were so…different…"

There are Pokemon that are acting strangely? Interesting…

"We'll look into this then." It's something worth mentioning towards the alpha right? We would have to keep tabs on this region too then.

"Please be careful."

"We will," I assured. Our group headed out from the clan borders and departed.

* * *

Getting back home isn't so hard if you know the way.

We headed down in the cave that leads to the entrance of our clan. It wouldn't be too bad if the cave wasn't poorly lit…or that every few paces we kept tripping over rocks. Couldn't they have leveled the ground a bit? I mean finding this cave is hard enough for those who don't know, but why would they have to make travelling so-

I heard a yelp, and found Archie's muzzle planted into the ground.

-annoying...I guess he hasn't gotten used to his body yet. He grumbled to himself as he got back up.

To get back to our clan grounds, we would have to find one of the many hidden entrances to this cave. There was only a few in every region. Just in case we got a mission or found a Sol, we would be able to get their quickly. The cave itself is a maze. There are so many twists and turn that some Pokemon can get lost forever. That usually won't happen though because of the amount of missions we go on; we would be bound to find them if that ever happens. Only a few marks are around that will indicate if you are going deeper and closer to the clan, or if you are going to reach the surface. Only those who live here know those signs.

Our clan is small place, built in the center of these caves that linked them together. What I find very interesting though, is that even if we live underground, we can look up and see the sky, clouds, and sun. It's as if we were actually living outside.

We were more advanced than most Pokemon. We had built our own housing next to each others. We had designated spots for everything, with the alpha's den being at the northern most part of the clan; it's also slightly bigger than the rest. The training grounds to the east, food to the south of it, and we even had our very own arena for battling.

We exited the cave and we all breathed in the fresh air of the clan grounds. Although a small mission, it was a success. And it wouldn't be long before the biggest mission were to be assigned; the Sealing.

Archie needs to be trained even more now because of his evolution…and prepare for future battles…


End file.
